Ballets Russes Archive: Materials in the Collection

Of all the types of materials in our collection, perhaps the largest single manuscript grouping that we have are programs. There are two main varieties of programs in our collection. The first is the flashiest and most artistic. These are the souvenir programs.

We have souvenir programs from all three Ballets Russes companies.

We have several from Diaghilev's Ballets Russes.

Diaghilev's Ballet Russes Souvenir Program - 1922.
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

Some of the Diaghilev material features art by the great artists that the company worked with over the years. This program features a sketch by Pablo Picasso.

Diaghilev's Ballets Russes Souvenir Program - 1927
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

There are programs from the joint Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo company founded by René Blum and Colonel de Basil.

Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo Souvenir Program - 1932
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

We also have a number of programs from Colonel de Basil's Original Ballet Russe company, although the name of the company varies based on the year and location where the company was performing. There is a large gap in the years based on the company spending much of WWII in South and Central America.

De Basil's Ballets Russes Souvenir Program - 1935-37
Miguel Terekhov Collection

We also have souvenir programs from the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo company which was run by Serge Denham and primarily toured across the United States.

Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo Souvenir Program, 1943-44
Shirley Haynes Collection

While most souvenir programs were created for the company and used across different cities, sometimes, the more far-flung areas created their own souvenir programs. An example of this is from the Original Ballet Russe's tours of Australia and New Zealand.

Original Ballet Russe Souvenir Program from 1936-37 tour of New Zealand
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

While the souvenir programs are more recognizable, the vast majority of programs that we have are from individual performances. Some of them are more illustrious than others, like the staging of all three ballets choreographed by Massine with costumes and sets by Picasson.

December 21, 1920 performance program featuring performances of
Parade, Pulcinella, and Le Tricorne.

Other performance programs are interesting because of the companies and the dancers. They could be from the early days of the combined Blum and De Basil Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo.

November 1932 performance in Amsterdam
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

April 1933 performance in Monte Carlo
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

February 1934 performance in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

Some of the performance programs are almost as interesting to look at as the souvenir programs with beautiful covers and interesting art work.

May 1935 performance in Barcelona, Spain
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

July 1935 performance program from London, England
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

Often the interest comes from being in a far-flung location. The Original Ballet Russe did several tours of Australia and then spent nearly five years in Central and South America. While many pieces from the Australian tour remained and have been displayed in Australia, much of the work and material from the South American years has been unknown.

October 1936 performance program from Adelaide, Australia
Nathalie Branitzka-Hoyer Collection

Many of the South and Central American programs have never been seen and include the first appearances of young dancers and the debuts of culturally relevant works.

1941 performance program from Havana, Cuba
Tatiana Bechenova Collection

July 1942 performance program from Montevideo, Uruguay
Tatiana Bechenova Collection

September 1942 program from Buenos Aires, Argentina
Tatiana Bechenova Collection

We also have programs from the many cities in the United States that the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo performed. These range from big cities like Chicago and New York, to smaller places like Oklahoma City and York, Pennsylvania.